Cloth inspection and handling system



May 17, 1949. o. J. NORTON CLOTH INSPECTION AND HANDLING SYSTEM 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 18, 1945 y 1949. o. J. NORTON 2,470,515

CLOTH INSPECTION AND HANDLING SYSTEM Filed Oct. 18, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 0 Ho n R a r cg Patented May 17, 1949 UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE CLOTH INSPECTION AND HANDLING SYSTEM Virginia Application October 18, 1945, Serial No. 623,007

6 Claims. 1

In the manufacture of textile bolt goods it is usual after the cloth has been completely processed to carry out an inspection operation to determine any imperfections in the cloth before shipment. In a typical case, the inspection operation is carried out by passing cloth over an inspection table to a wind-up roll. A difficulty common to this method of cloth inspection has been the problem of providing a means for causing the cloth to travel at a constant speed past an inspection station. This difiiculty is cocasioned by the fact that as the cloth is wound in rolls it tends to be taken onto the winding roll at a progressively increasing speed as the roll builds up during winding. This varying, increasing, speed prevents accurate inspection by the inspector who watches the cloth as it passes over the inspection table.

The usual expedient for overcoming this difficulty and providing a constant rate of travel for the cloth during inspection has been to wind the inspected cloth on a floating roll which is driven by surface contact with one or more associated driven rolls rotating at constant speed. A disadvantage of this method is that the driven rolls often mar the cloth as it is wound up and thus introduce defects after the inspection operation which are not detected.

A further and even more important objection to the use of the above mentioned floating rolls driven by surface contact is that they are unsuited for use with Sanforized cloth. As is well known, Sanforizing consists in settin the yarn elements of cloth initially in a wrinkled condition which will be maintained under normal handling until the cloth is laundered, at which time the wrinkles will come out to compensate for shrinkage. Where inspection method involve a floating roll driven by surface contact, however, the pressure necessary to drive the floating roll by surface contact is sufficiently great to remove Sanforizing. That is, the surface contact pressure which is exerted directly on the cloth being inspected at it is wound up on the floating roll tends to remove the set placed. in. the cloth by the sanforizing treatment and thus nullify the effect of the treatment.

According to the present invention the dis advantages of prior methods of inspecting cloth are avoided by providing a means for varying the speed of a driven cloth skewer so that the peripheral speed of a roll of cloth wound on the skewer is maintained constant, and the cloth is accordingly drawn past an inspection station at a constant rate of travel and without marring of the 2 cloth. My invention also provides means for easy removal of the inspected roll of cloth from the winding skewer.

My invention is illustrated in th accompanyme drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of equipment embodying the cloth inspection and handlin system of my invention;

Fig. 2 is partial front elevation;

Fig. 3 is a corresponding section substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a right side elevation showing a wound cloth roll disposed for removal on the take-off table;

Fig. 5 is a detail in front elevation of the pivoted mounting of the cloth roll skewer;

Fig. 6 is a left side elevation of the pivoted mounting with the locking lever elevated to allow pivoting of the cloth roll skewer;

Fig. '7 is a right side elevation showing the pivoted mounting with the cloth roll skewer in pivoted position; and

Fig. 8 is a detail in perspective of the skewer chuck.

Generally described my cloth inspection and handling system comprises means for guiding cloth IE! to be inspected from an industrial truck H or the like on which it may be disposed after processing to an inspection table [2. The cloth I!) is drawn over the inspection table [2 at a constant rate of travel by virtue of constant speed control means, described more in detail below, on to a driven cloth skewer l3 which winds the cloth II] in roll form, as at [4. The cloth skewer I3 is provided with a special pivoted mounting, indicated generally in Fig. 1 at l5, which allows the skewer l3 to be extended from the inspection table l2 for removal of a wound cloth roll it. A take-ofi table I6 may be arranged as shown in Figs. 1 and 4 in relation to the extended position of skewer l3 so that after a roll M has been inspected and wound it may be easily removed from the skewer I3 and packaged for shipment. The take-off table l6 may be replaced by any other convenient conveyor system or the like for handling the cloth rolls [4 removed from skewer To dispose the folded cloth properly for the inspection operation, the cloth IE! is led from the truck H to an overhead structure A! which sup-- ports a system of guide rolls. The cloth is first led over a top guide roll l8 which is positioned with sufficient elevation on the overhead structure I! to extend the cloth ID from the truck it so as to remove folds from the cloth before the 3 guide roll la is reached. The cloth H1 is led from the top guide roll l8 under a lower guide roll l9, and then over succeeding guide rolls and 2| to the forward end of the overhead structur IT.

The cloth l0 may also be supplied to the inspection operation from rolls, if desired. For this purpose, standards 22 and a cross bar 23 are provided as illustrated in Fig. l. The cloth roll (not shown) is disposed on the cross bar 23, which is free to rotate on the standards 22, and the cloth is led directly from this roll to the group of tensioning rolls described below.

From the overhead structure IT, or from the standards 22 and cross bar 23 if the cloth to be inspected is disposed in rolls, the cloth Ill is led to a group of tensioning rolls 24, 25 and 26 which are mounted on the supporting frame 21 of the inspection table 2. The rolls 24 and 26 are arranged in relation to the roll 25 so that the cloth I0 is disposed over a major portion of the peripheral surface of roll 25 with the result that sufficient drag is effected to tension th cloth l0 as it passes over the inspection table l2. The tensioning roll 25 is also used as a yardage metering roll, and a suitable counter 28 is actuated as the roll 25 revolves to record the yardage of cloth l0 passing to the inspection table 2.

The inspection table I2 is mounted on the supporting frame 21 with a suitably slanted disposition to facilitate the inspection operation. Rollers 29 may be inserted in the table l2 at each end to protect the cloth H] as it passes over the ends of the tabl 2, and lights 30 may be arranged over the table |2 to insure adequate illumination for the inspection operation.

Th cloth I0 is led over the inspection table I2 from the group of tensioning rolls 24, 25 and 26 to the driven cloth skewer I 3 which, as previously mentioned, winds the cloth ID in roll form, as illustrated in Fig. 1 at l4. The cloth skewer 3 is mounted at one end, as mentioned above, in a special pivoted mountin 5, carried by supporting frame 21, and at the other end in a skewer chuck 3|. The skewer chuck 3| is carried in a bearing 32 also mounted on the supporting frame 21 and extends beyond the frame 21 to support a sprocket wheel 33. The sprocket wheel 33 revolves freely on the extending portion of the skewer chuck 3| but may be engaged for driving connection with the skewer chuck 3| by an associated clutch mechanism 34. The clutch mechanism 34 is shifted by a bell crank member 35 to which a spring 36 is attached to keep the clutch mechanism 34 normally in disengaged position allowing the sprocket wheel 33 to revolve freely without driving the skewer chuck 3|. The clutch mechanism 34 is shifted to engaged position through a link member 31 which extends from the bell crank 35 to a pivoted arm 38 carried by a rod 39 which extends transversely at the lower portion of the supporting frame 21. The rod 39 is fitted with a foot pedal 40 which may be depressed to actuate the above described linkages to shift the clutch mechanism 34 to engaged position when desired. The spring 36 returns the clutch mechanism 34 to disenga ed position whenever the pedal 40 is released from depressed condition.

The sprocket wheel 33 engages a sprocket chain 4| which runs to a second sprocket wheel 42 mounted on a shaft 43 at the rear of the supporting frame 21. The shaft 43 also carries a pulley 44 which is connected through a belt 45 to a second pulley 46. The pulleys 44 and 46 are suitably of the multiple-position type to providefor a speed adjustment at this point, and provision may be made for tensioning the belt drive 45 by an adjustably mounted auxiliary roller indicated at 41. The pulley 45 is mounted on a shaft 48 which also carries a larger pulley wheel 49 which is connected by belt drives 50 and 5| through an automatic speed control mechanism 52 to a motor drive 53.

The speed control mechanism 52 comprises a speed change pulley of the type in which a laterally shiftable, double-faced, pulley flange 54 is mounted between outer pulley flanges 55 and 56 on a shaft 5'1. The shaft 5'! is carried on an arm 58 pivoted on a supporting frame 2'! and normally held in raised position by a sprin 59 also attached to the frame 21. Under normal conditions the arm 58 will be raise-d by the spring 59 so that the double faced pulley flange 54 will be shifted to dispose the belt drive 5| at an inner position between the pulley flanges 54 and 55, and the belt drive 50 at an outer osition between the pulley flanges 54 and 56. Under these conditions it will be understood that the speed of rotation transmitted from the motor drive 53 will be increased through the speed change mechanism 52.

To provide for varying the speed transmitted from the motor drive 53 through the speed change mechanism 52 to maintain a constant peripheral speed of the cloth roll I4 wound up on the skewer l3 so that the cloth ID will be drawn over the inspection table l2 at a constant rate of travel, the speed change mechanism 52 is connected so that it is forced to change position as the cloth roll I 4 builds up on the cloth skewer I3. This change in position is effected from an idler control roll 60 which is mounted for rotation on arms 6| which extend from a transverse rod 62 pivotably mounted in bushings on the supporting frame 21. The idler control roll 60 is mounted so that it can be disposed in peripheral contact with the cloth skewer l3 or with a cloth roll |4 wound on the skewer l3 as the case may be, and the supporting arms 6| are fixed on the rod 62.

. Also, fixed on the rod 62 is an arm 63 extending to a pivoted connection with a link member 64 which is likewise pivotably connected with the arm 58 on which the speed change mechanism 52 is mounted. The above described arrangement is adjusted so that the idler control roll 60 is disposed in peripheral contact with the cloth skewer l3 when the speed change mechanism 52 is held in fully raised position by the spring 60. As cloth I0 is drawn over the inspection table l2 and wound on skewer |3 to form the cloth roll l4, the idler control roll 6!] is displaced by the cloth roll I4 as it builds up. This change in position of the idler control roll l4 causes the arms 6| to pivot and shift rod 62 so that arm 63 is also. pivoted. When arm 63 is pivoted in this manner it exerts a pull through link member 6.4 tov lower arm 58 supporting the speed change mechanism 52 against the force of spring 59. Lowering of arm 53, and consequently of speed change mechanism 52, in this manner, causes a shift of the belt drive 5| from an inner toward an outer position between the pulley flanges 54 and 55, and a correspondingly opposite shift. between pulley flanges 54 and 56, so that the increase. of the speed of rotation transmitted from the motor drive 53 will be reduced and may even be changed to a decrease if desired. By this means, the speed of rotation transmitted to the driving cloth skewer I3 can be varied to maintain the peripheral speed. of the cloth roll l4, and in turn the rate of travel of the cloth I over the inspection table l2, substantially constant throughout the inspection operation.

ter an inspected roll of cloth has been wound on the cloth skewer [3, the pivot-ed mounting l for the skewer i3 is adapted to allow the skewer it to be extended from the inspection table l2 so that the roll M may be removed. An indication of the yardage wound on the cloth skewer I3 is provided by the previously mentioned counter 28 actuated from the tensioning roll 25. When the desired yardage is indicated by the counter 28, the cloth It may be cut to free the cloth roll l4 built up on the skewer l3 and prepare it for removal.

The pivoted mounting it for the cloth skewer (see Figs. 5, 6 and '7) comprises a pivot block 65 mounted between support brackets 66. The pivot block 65 carries a bearing 67 in which the skewer i3 is journal-ed, and a pivoted locking lever 68. The skewer l3 extends in reduced diameter through the bearing 6? and this reduced diameter continues for a distance sufiicient to receive the locking lever (is as well. During the inspection operation the locking lever 68 is maintained in lowered position to engage this reduced diameter of the skewer i3 and together with an end flange E59 lock the skewer is against transverse movement. When it is desired to remove a roll of cloth i i from the skewer [3, however, the locking lever 68 may be raised so as to allow the skewer it to be shifted transversely in the bearing El as illustrated in Fig. 6. This shift allows the opposite end of the skewer I3 to be disengaged from the skewer chuck 3i. Engagement with the skewer chuck as is effected through the reception of a square end portion 1'0 of the skewer E3 in square jaws ll of the skewer chuck 3|, and the transverse shift of the skewer l3 in the pivoted mounting 55 allows this square end portion it to be removed from the jaws 'H of the chuck 3! (see Fig. 8). As a result, the skewer it may be freely pivoted about the mounting I5 to extended position from the inspection table l2 (see Figs. 4 and 8).

A bracket structure 72 is provided to support the skewer is as it is extended in this manner. The bracket structure includes a rail arm 13 which is disposed in supporting engagement with an enlarged portion M of the skewer l3 which is spaced somewhat from the pivoted mounting it. This spacing provides sufficient supporting leverage to avoid undue strain on the pivoted mounting is. The rail arm l3 describes an are which the enlarged portion 14 of the skewer l3 rides as it extended. A. depression 15 in the rail arm "is receives the enlarged portion 74 and locates the skewer 53 in fully extended position.

When the skewer i3 is fully extended in this manner it assumes a position in relation to a takeoff table it as illustrated in Fig. 4. The take-01f table it shown in the drawing supports a movable carriage it which rides rails 'l'l arranged on the table structure, and may be moved between end stops it. The table it is arranged so that when the cloth skewer i3 is extended in fully pivoted position a cloth roll wound on this skewer I3 is disposed on the movable carriage 16. The skewer it is usually fitted with a paper core (as at 19 in Fig. l) as a base for the cloth roll M to be wound on the skewer it. With the cloth roll [4 disposed on movable carriage it as just described, the carriage it is easily moved away from the inspection table i2 to strip the roll H! on the paper core is from the skewer [3. By placing wrapping paper or other packaging means on the movable carriage it before the skewer i3 is extended to dispose the cloth roll [4 on the carriage 16 the inspected and wound roll I4 can be readily packaged and prepared for shipment immediately after inspection.

The above described take-off arrangement makes it possible to remove the roll of cloth [4 from the skewer l3 and package it for shipment easily and without the necessity for any heavy lifting or other strenuous manual effort, The rail arm 13 supports the roll of cloth id as it is pivoted to the take-off table It, and in pivoted position the roll M is fully supported on the carriage 16.

I claim:

1. In a cloth inspection machine having a frame structure supporting an inspection table and a driven cloth skewer rotatably mounted on said frame structure for drawing cloth over said inspection table and winding the inspected cloth in rolls, means for mounting said cloth skewer comprising a driven chuck journalled on said frame structure for engaging one end of said cloth skewer, a pivoted journal mounting disposed on said frame structure for slidably supporting the other end of said cloth skewer, and means for selectively retaining said cloth skewer against sliding movement in said pivoted journal mounting for engagement with said driven chuck or for releasing said cloth skewer for sliding move ment whereby said cloth skewer may be disengaged from said chuck and pivoted about said journal mounting to dispose a roll of inspected cloth wound thereon in a position extending from the machine and thereby allow said roll of cloth to be stripped from said cloth skewer.

2. A winding mechanism for cloth and the like comprising a skewer member adapted for winding material in roll form, a driven chuck for engaging and supporting one end of said skewer member, a pivoted journal mounting for slidably supporting the other end or said skewer member, and means for selectively retaining said skewer member against sliding movement in said pivoted journal mounting for engagement with said driven chuck or for releasing said skewer member for sliding movement whereby said skewer member may be disengaged from said chuck and pivoted about said journal mounting to allow removal of a roll of material wound on said skewer member.

3. A cloth inspection machine comprising an inspection table, means for guiding cloth to be inspected to said table, a driven, rotatably mounted, cloth skewer arranged to draw the cloth over said table for inspection and wind the inspected cloth in rolls, a constant speed driving means for said cloth skewer, speed change means interposed between said driving means and said cloth skewer, means responsive to the diametric size of a roll of inspected cloth wound on said cloth skewer for controlling said speed change means in relation to the diametric size of said roll and thereby varying the speed of rotation of said driven cloth skewer to maintain the speed of travel of the cloth over said inspection table substantially constant, and a pivoted journal mounting for slidably supportin said cloth skewer at one end and means for selectively retaining said cloth skewer against sliding movement in said pivoted journal mounting for driving engagement or for releasing said cloth skewer for sliding movement, whereby said cloth skewer may be disengaged for pivoting about said journal mounting to dispose a roll of inspected cloth wound thereon in a position extending from the machine and thereby allow said roll or cloth to be stripped from said cloth skewer.

4. In a cloth inspection machine having a frame structure supporting an inspection table, a driven cloth skewer rotatably mounted on said frame structure for drawing cloth over said inspection table and winding the inspected cloth in rolls, variable speed driving means disposed on said frame structure for engaging said cloth skewer at one end, an idler control roll disposed on said frame structure in yieldingly pressed peripheral contact with said driven cloth skewer for displacement by inspected cloth wound on said cloth skewer, said control roll being operatively associated with said driving means for varying the speed of rotation of said driven cloth skewer in relation to the displacement of said control roll whereby the speed of travel of the cloth over said inspection table is maintained substantially constant, and a pivoted journal mounting disposed on said frame structure for slidably supporting the other end of said cloth skewer, and means for selectively retaining said cloth skewer against sliding movement in said pivoted journal mounting for driving engagement or for releasing said cloth skewer for sliding movement whereby said cloth skewer may be disengaged for pivoting about said journal mounting to dispose a roll of inspected cloth wound thereon in a position extending from the machine and thereby allow said roll of cloth to be stripped from said cloth skewer.

5. In a cloth inspection machine having a frame structure supporting an inspection table, a driven cloth skewer rotatably mounted on said frame structure for drawing cloth over said inspection table and winding the inspected cloth in rolls, driving means disposed on said frame structure for engaging said cloth skewer at one end, a pivoted journal mounting disposed on said frame structure for slidably supporting the other end of said cloth skewer, means for selectivel retaining said cloth skewer against sliding movement in said pivoted journal mounting for engagement with said driving means or for releasing said cloth skewer for sliding movement whereby said cloth skewer may be disengaged from said driving means and pivoted about said journal mounting to dispose a roll of inspected cloth wound thereon in a position extending from the machine, and a movable carriage disposed for receiving said roll of cloth in supporting relation when said cloth skewer is pivoted to extending position and for stripping said roll of cloth from said cloth skewer by movement away from said machine.

6. A winding mechanism for cloth and the like comprising a skewer member adapted for winding material in roll form, driving means for engaging and supporting one end of said skewer member, a pivoted journal mounting for slidably supporting the other end of said skewer member, means for selectively retaining said skewer member against sliding movement in said pivoted journal mounting for engagement with said driving means or for releasing said skewer member for sliding movement whereby said skewer member may be disengaged from said driving means and pivoted about said journal mounting to dispose a roll of material wound thereon in a position extending from said mechanism, and a movable carriage disposed for receiving said roll of material in supporting relation when said skewer member is pivoted to extending position and for stripping said roll of material from said skewer member by movement away from said machine.

OSCAR J. NORTON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 629,104 Eggmann July 18, 1899 758,322 Krause Apr. 26, 1904 867,298 Perry Oct. 1, 1907 1,780,628 Nabholz Nov. 4, 1930 1,861,422 Cluett May 31, 1932 1,930,077 Bentley Oct. 10, 1933 2,214,333 Walsh et a1 Sept. 10, 1940 2,305,420 Herard, J1. Dec. 15, 1942 2,384,879 Bodansky et al Sept. 18, 1945 2,415,857 Watson Feb. 18, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 17,127 Austria Aug. 25, 1904 552,638 France Jan. 25, 1923 

